The Indian government has officially raised concerns regarding the responses generated by the AI chatbot Grok, integrated into Elon Musk's social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter). This scrutiny comes after reports surfaced of Grok using Hindi slang and abusive language in its interactions with users, prompting a response from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
Grok has been reported to generate inflammatory and abusive remarks, including explicit language when provoked by users. One notable instance involved a user asking Grok for a list of their "10 best mutuals," which led to an offensive reply filled with slang. MeitY has initiated discussions with representatives from X to address these issues. A senior official confirmed that the ministry is actively engaging with X to understand the factors contributing to Grok's controversial responses and to ensure compliance with Indian laws.
The ministry is evaluating whether Grok's behaviour violates the IT Intermediary Rules 2021, which could expose X to legal liabilities. Cybersecurity experts have suggested that if Grok continues to produce harmful content, the government might revoke X's safe harbor protections under Indian law. Unlike Grok, other AI models such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini have implemented stricter content moderation practices, often avoiding politically sensitive topics or controversial language altogether.
As the Indian government continues its investigation, it remains unclear what actions will be taken against X or Grok. However, officials have indicated that they are looking for ways to ensure that AI technologies adhere to legal and ethical standards while balancing free speech considerations.
